Solved New build still has G.Skill Ram Problem With XMP On?

Back in March of 2026 I built a new computer with an Asus Prime Z790 Max Gaming Wifi7 motherboard, Intel i5-14600K, G.SKILL Trident Z5 RGB Series DDR5 RAM (Intel XMP 3.0) 32GB (2x16GB) 6400MT/s CL32-39-39-102 1.40V (F5-6400J3239G16GA2-TZ5RK), Samsung 990 Pro 2tb SSD, Cooler Master N400 case, Pioneer DVR-S21WBK/PLUS DVD Burner, StarTech.com 3.5in Front Bay 22-in-1 USB 2.0 Internal Multi Media Memory Card Reader. This thread details the problems I had, which amounted to the fact the the computer would not boot normally while XMP was turned on and when forcibly rebooted you would get a message that the computer booted into safe mode and to go into the Bios and reset to defaults. So the memory which was 6400MT/s would only boot if XMP was off and autodetect set the speed to 4800MT/s. I opened a ticket with Asus and to date I have heard nothing from them. Brand New Build Gets Stuck With No Video

Now to todays problem, I'm building another brand new computer with an Asus Prime Z890M-Plus WIFI motherboard, Intel Core Ultra 5 250K Plus, the same G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB Series DDR5 RAM (Intel XMP 3.0) 32GB (2x16GB) Up to 6400MT/s* CL32-39-39-102 1.40V Desktop Computer Memory U-DIMM - Matte Black (F5-6400J3239G16GA2-TZ5RK), Samsung 990 Pro 1TB, Fractal Pop Mini case, Thermalright CPU cooler etc. Prior to setting XMP on I updated the Bios and ME Firmware to the latest non-Beta firmware: Version 3212 11.65 MB 2026/08/10. But as with the Z790 build from my other post as soon as I turn XMP on and the ram is preset to the XMP 6400/MTs settings from the ram the computer won't boot; same as before.

Now I got back into settings and turned off XMP and the ram went back to 4800MT/s along with all the other default ram settings and I'm able to install Widows 11 but saying "I'm a little angry" is like saying water is wet. This ram was $569.90, the same ram I bought in January for $479.99 and September 2025 and earlier I build more than 10 computers which I bought for $119.99 each and used all ASUS Z790 Prime Gaming WIFI7 Intel LGA 1700 ATX for those 10 plus computers and not a single one of those computers had a problem with this G.Skill ram with XMP turned on; all of them ran the ram at 6400/MTs with not a single problem. And yet the newer motherboards are craping out using XMP and Asus is not helping, is there anything else I can do?

Thanks!

@NormAtHome

I had the same problem on my current build, but it was AMD's DOCP instead of XMP. Same thing though.


Long story short, you need to manually set the RAM to the XMP settings shown on the SPD tab in CPU-Z...
The RAM frequency, timings and voltage.

Bios up to date? IF not i'd suggest starting there and updating to the latest as it appears it has some memory fixes. Secondly would be testing another group of ram in the build. etc etc etc...
Version 3401
Beta Version
11.64 MB
2026/09/23
Support Link

JBish said:

Bios up to date? IF not i'd suggest starting there and updating to the latest as it appears it has some memory fixes. Secondly would be testing another group of ram in the build. etc etc etc...
Version 3401
Beta Version
11.64 MB
2026/09/23
Support Link

Click to expand...

I did specifically mention "Prior to setting XMP on I updated the Bios and ME Firmware to the latest non-Beta firmware: Version 3212 11.65 MB 2026/08/10. But as with the Z790 build from my other post as soon as I turn XMP on and the ram is preset to the XMP 6400/MTs settings from the ram the computer won't boot; same as before." I'm not sure I'm comfortable going to 3401 as it's classified as Beta firmware.

Ghot said:

@NormAtHome

I had the same problem on my current build, but it was AMD's DOCP instead of XMP. Same thing though.


Long story short, you need to manually set the RAM to the XMP settings shown on the SPD tab in CPU-Z...
The RAM frequency, timings and voltage.

ASUS motherboard RAM timings problem - Windows 10 Help Forums

Ok, just updated the BIOS on my ASUS Pro WS X570-ACE motherboard, from 1302 to 2301. Obviously, the computer is working, but I had previously set the RAM timings to manufacturer's specs, but can't seem to do that... this time. Motherboard support page: Pr

www.tenforums.com

Click to expand...

A friend of mine who I was chatting with before just sent me this link: https://rog-forum.asus.com/t5/intel-800-series/z890m-does-not-boot-with-xmp/td-p/1052307 and I'm ashamed to say that this actually worked; move the ram from slots A1 & B1 to A2 & B2 then turn XMP on and it works as it should. I don't know that I would have ever thought of this because the ram in all those Z790 motherboards was all in slots A1 & B1.

NormAtHome said:

I did specifically mention "Prior to setting XMP on I updated the Bios and ME Firmware to the latest non-Beta firmware: Version 3212 11.65 MB 2026/08/10. But as with the Z790 build from my other post as soon as I turn XMP on and the ram is preset to the XMP 6400/MTs settings from the ram the computer won't boot; same as before." I'm not sure I'm comfortable going to 3401 as it's classified as Beta firmware.

Click to expand...

I've been on ASUS boards since the very early 2000's.
Stay away from the beta BIOSes.

Just disable XMP in the BIOS and manually set the RAM freq., timings and voltage to the XMP values on the SPD tab of CPU-Z.

NormAtHome said:

A friend of mine who I was chatting with before just sent me this link: https://rog-forum.asus.com/t5/intel-800-series/z890m-does-not-boot-with-xmp/td-p/1052307 and I'm ashamed to say that this actually worked; move the ram from slots A1 & B1 to A2 & B2 then turn XMP on and it works as it should. I don't know that I would have ever thought of this because the ram in all those Z790 motherboards was all in slots A1 & B1.

Click to expand...

If you have just two sticks of RAM, they should always go into A2 and B2 slots. It is in the manuals.

@NormAtHome

About 15-20 years ago all motherboard manufacturers started putting the RAM in the 2nd and 4th slots counting away from the CPU. This was to make room for the larger CPU air coolers.

I see your manual doesn't tell you that anymore... save this pic from my manual, back before they got cheap with their manuals...

Well, it isn't even in my manual.


Anyway here's a pic of your motherboard. With two sticks of RAM, they always go in the slots marked with the RED dots...
Doesn't matter what they label the slots. It's always the 2nd and the 4th slots counting away from the CPU.







My post #2 above is only for a case where you have the RAM in the correct slots and XMP doesn't work.

NormAtHome said:

I did specifically mention "Prior to setting XMP on I updated the Bios and ME Firmware to the latest non-Beta firmware: Version 3212 11.65 MB 2026/08/10. But as with the Z790 build from my other post as soon as I turn XMP on and the ram is preset to the XMP 6400/MTs settings from the ram the computer won't boot; same as before." I'm not sure I'm comfortable going to 3401 as it's classified as Beta firmware.

Click to expand...

The memory you're attempting to run @6400, not on QVL list, GSKILL modules shown are only up to 6000...

PerpetualCycle said:

If you have just two sticks of RAM, they should always go into A2 and B2 slots. It is in the manuals.

Click to expand...

This Right Here!

It is in the manual, but you gotta pay attention/watch for it, or you'll miss it...From page 1-5 of the ASUS Z790 GAMING WIF MB Manual:



They do indicate '1st' for the 'DIMM_A2' & 'DIMM_B2' Slots, but that's all you get, so no real explanation and you basically need to rely on the info graphic.

ASUS used to put asterisks next to the 'DIMM_A2' & 'DIMM_B2' Slots in their MB Manuals, with NO explanation of course (at least as far back as the ,ASUS ROG Maximus XII Hero | Z490 MB), so you needed to catch/notice it in the info graphic. When I built my 'System Two' Gaming PC, I was looking for which specific slots I needed to use (I usually read such manuals) so I found it, but you DEFINITELY had to look for it!

JBish said:

The memory you're attempting to run @6400, not on QVL list, GSKILL modules shown are only up to 6000...

Click to expand...

Just because it's not on the QVL list doesn't mean it won't work, just that it hasn't been tested. I bought this G.Skill kit F5-6400J3239G16GA2-TZ5RK and this G.Skill kit which is a very close match is on the QVL list F5-6400J3239G16X2-TZ5RS and if you Google what's the difference between these kits this is what you get "The G.SKILL part numbers F5-6400J3239G16GA2-TZ5RK and F5-6400J3239G16X2-TZ5RS (assuming X2 refers to GX2 and S refers to the color variant) share identical hardware specifications, with the letter suffixes (GA2 vs GX2) indicating regional distribution or sales channels rather than performance differences." so there's no difference between these kits other than the color so my kit is actually on the QVL list.

GSkill also tests various RAM types on most motherboards.
They have a tool called: RAM Configurator
It usually has tested quite a bit more RAM motherboard combos, than is shown on the motherboard's QVL list.
Ofc, it only finds GSkill RAM.

NormAtHome said:

Just because it's not on the QVL list doesn't mean it won't work, just that it hasn't been tested. I bought this G.Skill kit F5-6400J3239G16GA2-TZ5RK and this G.Skill kit which is a very close match is on the QVL list F5-6400J3239G16X2-TZ5RS and if you Google what's the difference between these kits this is what you get "The G.SKILL part numbers F5-6400J3239G16GA2-TZ5RK and F5-6400J3239G16X2-TZ5RS (assuming X2 refers to GX2 and S refers to the color variant) share identical hardware specifications, with the letter suffixes (GA2 vs GX2) indicating regional distribution or sales channels rather than performance differences." so there's no difference between these kits other than the color so my kit is actually on the QVL list.

Click to expand...

Not every board or memory will work together just because it worked "before" ... It could be a huge amount of things contributing to your issues with the Prime boards and this same memory. I've been building systems since the mid 90s. Quality control is not what it used to be.

Good Luck

Ghot said:

GSkill also tests various RAM types on most motherboards.
They have a tool called: RAM Configurator
It usually has tested quite a bit more RAM motherboard combos, than is shown on the motherboard's QVL list.
Ofc, it only finds GSkill RAM.

RAM Configurator - G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd.

Find compatible memory kits for your motherboard. Just select the motherboard from the dropdown list and click on Search for a list of compatible G.SKILL memory kits.

www.gskill.com

Click to expand...

^This. I am not confident g.skill tests their memory on every motherboard in their QVL list - they probably assume similar behavior across similar model boards. But if it is on their list, they will back it up.